Even though the delivery dates for some of the third-generation iPad models may have slipped to March 19th, there’s still some good news to be had. Per 9to5Mac, the first shipment notifications this week of ‘new iPads’ departing out of Chengdu in Western China. Chengdu, you’ll recall, was the site of a deadly Foxconn explosion on an iPad 2 assembly line last summer.

If you blinked yesterday, you might have missed some of the updates from the Cupertino Mothership.

Per The Unofficial Apple Weblog, Apple, released version 2.1 of its iBooks application. The new version functions as a redesign to support the new iPad Retina Display and adds a feature that lets page numbers correspond to the printed editions. This only works on some titles, but obviously the feature will be spreading to more and publications.

Users can now search for a page number and jump to it with a single tap and you can use your finger as a highlighter when swiping over text.

The update requires iOS 4.2 or later to install and run.

The company also released version 1.4 of its Find My iPhone utility. The changes are mainly to support the iPad Retina Display, and there are the usual bug fixes and stability enhancements. Find my iPhone has rescued many a lost iPhone and iPad, so if you’re not signed up, it’s free to do so.

The update requires iOS 3.1.3 or later to install and run.

If you’ve tried the new versions and have any feedback to offer, please let us know in the comments.

Per Macworld, a new variant of the password-stealing Flashback malware aimed at Macs has emerged, the new software attempting to install itself after a user visits an infected website, according to new research.

Flashback, discovered by security vendor Intego last September, is engineered to steal passwords for websites, including financial sites. Since its emergence, several variants have appeared showing its authors’ innovation.

The first version of Flashback tried to trick users into installing it by masquerading as Adobe’s Flash Player. Later versions checked to see if the Apple computer in question had an unpatched version of Java with two software vulnerabilities.

If the computer was running unpatched Java, Flashback automatically installed itself. If the Java attack didn’t work, Flashback then presented itself as an Apple update with a self-signed security certificate.

The latest “Flashback.N” version spotted by Intego tries to infect the computer after a person has visited an infected Web page. The tactic is often referred to as a drive-by download. Much of the drive-by download malware for Windows can infect a computer without any action by the user merely by visiting the tampered website.

Users get a bit more warning with Flashback.N. Upon hitting the infected website, Flashback.N shows a “Software Update” dialog box similar to the legitimate Apple one and asks for a user’s password.

On its blog, Intego described the installation procedure as “somewhat odd,” as the website, that has been rigged to deliver the malware, displays Apple’s multicolored spinning gear for a while before the dialog box appears. Flashback then injects itself into the Safari browser and starts sniffing data traffic for passwords.

Earlier this week, Intego found that Flashback was using Twitter as a command-and-control mechanism. Other botnets have also used Twitter to post commands or directions to new commands.

The Flashback malware queries Twitter for 12-character hashtag composed of seemingly random characters, according to an Intego blog post. The strings are actually generated using 128-bit RC4 encryption and are composed of four characters for the day, four for the month and four for the year.

As always, look before you leap in terms of the sites you visit, keep your Mac OS X operating system updated and whoever would like to contribute to a piranha-filled pool to hurl the Flashback malware creators into upon their discovery, we welcome your contributions.

You people wanted the iPad 3…now you might have to wait a few extra days to get yours.

Per AppleInsider, shipping estimates for the white 4G LTE model from AT&T have slipped to March 19 at Apple’s online store.

Both the 16-gigabyte and 64-gigabyte models are now advertised to ship by March 19, while the 32-gigabyte model is still shown to deliver on March 16.

There are not yet any delays for the Wi-Fi-only models, or any of the Verizon models. In addition, all of the black third-generation iPad models compatible with AT&T remain available for delivery on March 16.

Next Friday’s iPad launch marks the most ambitious debut yet for a new version of Apple’s touchscreen tablet. It will launch on day one in a total of 10 countries: the U.S., Canada, the U.K., France, Germany, Switzerland, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore and Australia.

Demand for the iPad is expected to continue to grow, bolstered by the Retina Display on the latest model, as well as a lower US$399 entry price for the 16-gigabyte Wi-Fi-only iPad 2. The 3G-capable 16-gigabyte iPad 2 is also available for US$529.

The third-generation iPad may look fairly identical to its predecessor, but it’s what’s inside that counts.

Though the new A5X chip in Apple’s third-generation iPad features the same dual-core CPU found in its predecessor, the system-on-a-chip is still believed to double the onboard RAM to 1 gigabyte.

Although Apple has never announced the amount of RAM built into any iPad or iPhone, preferring to focus less on technical specifications and more on the abilities of a devicea source who spoke with The Verge said the new A5X processor found in the latest iPad will, in fact, feature a gigabyte of RAM.

This amount doubles the 512MB of RAM found on the iPad 2 and says something about the iPad 3’s new battery, as RAM limitations in previous chips were said to be driven by battery life concerns. Last October, Microsoft explained that RAM is constantly consuming power, so the more memory that is included with a system, the less battery life it gets.

Reports first surfaced ahead of Apple’s iPad unveiling that Apple would increase the RAM in its custom processor. The information was derived from alleged iPad debug photos that leaked last month.

The new A5X processor features a dual-core CPU, the same as the A5. But its performance has been boosted by a new quad-core graphics processor that Apple says is twice as fast as the Nvidia Tegra 3 while offering four times the performance.

If you’re going to snag an iPad 3, it never hurts to have it under warranty.

Per MacNN, in tandem with announcing a third-generation iPad, Apple has also brought its AppleCare+ warranty option to the tablet. By default an iPad is only given a limited one-year warranty, with 90 days of free support. Paying US$99 extends coverage up to two years, and allows for two incidents of accidental damage, although in each instance a US$49 service fee still applies.

The plan covers not just an iPad but its battery, power adapter, and USB cable, as well as any AirPort or Time Capsule device bought during coverage or two years before. AppleCare+ must, however, be applied no later than 30 days after buying an iPad. The warranty package was initially offered only to iPhone 4S buyers.

Following its iPad 3 press event at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco, Apple released version 10.6 of its iTunes multimedia/jukebox application. The new version, an 81.4 megabyte download, adds the following fixes and changes:

– iTunes 10.6 adds the ability to play 1080p HD movies and TV shows from the iTunes Store.

– Improved song matching via iTunes Match.

– Improved album artwork handling, downloading, and display.

– Addresses an issue where songs may skip when playing from iCloud.

iTunes 10.6 requires Mac OS X 10.5 or later to install and run.

If you’ve tried the new version and have any feedback, please let us know in the comments.

It may look exactly the same as its previous generation, but some oomph has been added.

Per Macworld, Apple unveiled a new Apple TV model on Wednesday, with support for 1080p video and a new user interface, at a special event in San Francisco.

The new Apple TV model features a redesigned user interface with iOS-like buttons that appear on the home screen below the thumbnail images. The buttons highlight Apple’s movies, TV shows, music, computers, trailers, podcasts, and settings areas, but also better call out the third-party services available on the Apple TV, including Netflix, Vimeo, and live sports subscriptions for baseball, basketball, and hockey.

Still, the good news for current Apple TV owners is that the new interface is available Wednesday as a free software update.

The company also added support for 1080p HD video with the new model. Previously, the Apple TV only supported 720p HD video, and that’s the highest resolution that Apple sold through the iTunes Store. Now the Apple TV can play 1080p video, and movies and TV shows sold by Apple will now be available in 1080p resolution as well.

Users can redownload movies you purchased on any of your devices. Movies and TV shows in the iTunes Store will now support 1080p HD. The higher resolution means better-looking photos too.

Apple has allowed you to redownload (or stream to the Apple TV) TV shows you’ve purchased already. The company has now added movies to the list of content you can redownload as well.

The Apple TV also incorporates Apple’s Genius functionality in order to recommend movies based on your downloading habits.

The new Apple TV looks identical to the previous model, but incorporates a more-powerful single-core A5 chip instead of Apple’s older A4 chip from the second-generation Apple TV.

The new model will be available on March 16 at the same US$99 price as before.

Following its iPad 3 press event at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco, Apple quickly posted streaming video of the event.

The keynote was hosted by Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook, and featured presentations by other members of the company’s top brass, including Phil Schiller and Eddy Cue.

The biggest news Wednesday was the new iPad, which features a high-resolution Retina Display and a new A5X CPU packing a quad-core graphics processor starting at $499. The cameras have also been improved, with a rear-facing 5-megapixel lens capable of 1080p video, while the wireless-capable models now feature connectivity with 4G LTE networks from carriers like Verizon and Sprint.

Other presentations, such as AutoDesk for iOS, new games and a newly-created version of iPhoto for iOS, are presented in the video and show the bells and whistles of the new tablet.

Click the link, take a gander and if something’s on your mind, please let us know what you think in the comments.